If it Could Only Be You (Prequel)
by ForeverWells
Summary: In a series of short works set chronologically before its predecessor, "If It Could Only Be You", discover the physical, emotional and mental trauma that Jonny and Jessie went through before meeting again five years later.
1. Chapter 1

Hope you enjoy these shorts...

 **Chapter 1**

 _The day of…._

Jessie Bannon kept looking at the ground wondering...

Scientifically it was impossible. But, she had seen it with her own eyes and she knew it was true.

"Jessie," she heard her father whisper.

She didn't look up, rather, an exasperating sigh escaped her, "I have nothing else to say."

"I just wanted to tell you that the search party is going out tomorrow to try again," Race sat next to the cot she presently sat in.

"They're not going to find him," her voice was flat, defeated.

"Don't say that," Race shook his head.

A mirthless laugh rose from her throat, "Don't you get it, Dad? How many times have I told you that the ground took him? It swallowed him."

"I know you think we don't believe you," Race gently countered, "But, that's not it Jessie. We still need to look for him or at least for clues as to where we can find him."

The redhead finally looked up at her father. His blue eyes filled with worry told Jessie that he too didn't believe they'd find anything, "He's gone isn't he?"

"Don't say that," Race shook his head.

"Why? You don't believe anything different. Dad, I'm not saying that we should stop looking," she replied pushing some of her red hair way from her face, "All I'm saying is that it's been hours since the incident and searching for Jonny around these parts is a waste of time. He's not here. Whatever…no, whoever took him wouldn't have stayed around here. Have you contacted Agent Corbin?"

"Yes, he's already in flight. Should be here later tonight."

"How's Doctor Quest?"

"How do you think Ponchita," Race now sighed. "He was hesitant about ending the search. It took a lot of convincing on my part to do so. We've been searching for hours. The team needed the rest."

"Hadji's not doing well, either," she responded. "I feel so guilty."

"It wasn't your fault," he reminded her.

At hearing the words, Jessie couldn't stop the tears that ran down her cheeks, "Please Dad. It was my idea to go. Jonny's missing because of me."

"Neither one of you could have thought of something like that happening. Jessie, I'll be the first to admit that both you and Jonny shouldn't have gone out on your own, but you can't blame yourself for what happened."

"But Doctor Quest–"

"He doesn't blame you either," Race assured her. "He told me himself."

Jessie nodded, but it didn't make her feel any better.

Standing up, Race began heading out of the tent, but not before telling Jessie some more news, "Phil is bringing with him some special equipment."

Jessie looked questionably at her father.

"It's some type of machine that will allow us to see beneath the ground," he answered. "We…we want to make sure Jonny's not there."

The thought of him being there had Jessie crying even harder, "He's not. I'm sure his not Dad. Jonny's not there. I won't believe he is."

Race's eyes watered, but he fought a worthless fight and the tears began to come down as well. He however, controlled his tone and speech, "I don't believe so either, Jessie. I don't want to believe it. But, we need to discount everything."

XXXXXXXXXX

Walking faster than he would normally walk, the Master tried to contain his emotions in front of the other operatives that walked the same hallway around him. All had gone accordingly until the feed he listened to from his office went dead.

He had asked what had happened, but didn't receive an answer until minutes later when they told him something had gone wrong. Immediately, the doctor came in on the feed and told him he needed to get the operating room ready. The doctor had offered no other information. The last ten minutes had been the longest he had ever experienced. Once he got to double doors that led to the operating room, he caught sight of his son being wheeled in. _So much blood!_

Jonny's hair was bathed in blood. His own blood. Master also saw that Jonny had a broken leg and possibly a dislocated shoulder. One of the members of the medical team pumped oxygen to him through an oxygen bag.

He forced himself to pull his sights away from his son as he heard the voice of the doctor who began to bark orders to his team.

Looking up, he walked over to the man with the dark glasses, "Tell me what the hell happened, Oliver!"

In his usual cold demeanor, the doctor answered, "We miscalculated the fall. His left femur is broken, maybe the hip too, I'll need to go in and check just how bad the head trauma–"

"How could you let this happen?" Master's acid tone asked. "You said you calculated–"

"I told you that I would have to study that contraption further! You didn't give me enough time. You're lucky he's still alive. And if you want it to remain that way, you'll let me go right now so I can save your son's life." With that, the doctor pushed past the Master and went into the double doors running a few steps behind those that carried Jonny to the operating room.

Knowing that there wasn't anything else he could do, the Master took a seat in one of the chairs outside the area. He closed his eyes and shook his head. _Aidan, please make it….please._

XXXXXXXXXX

A few days had passed and the search was, as Jessie predicted, unsuccessful. There was no trace of Jonny Quest anywhere above or below the earth. Benton was beside himself. Hadji, to Jessie, looked lost. There were no words of encouragement or deep thoughts to soothe one's mind. Hadji was lost within himself trying to understand what had happened the last few days. Race and Phil had a mixture of anger and despair. Neither knew what to do or where else to go in this situation.

The Peruvian government, as cooperative as they were the last few days, were also anxious. They were already dealing with the mysterious earthquakes, they didn't want to deal with a missing child.

Jessie had just about finished packing her gear and belongings from the tent when her father walked in, "We leave in an hour," Race stated solemnly.

Jessie nodded without saying a word as she picked up the few items she had left.

"Jessie, this isn't over," Race tried to sound convincing, "We will find him."

"He's not at home, Dad," she replied angrily. "Why are we wasting our time going home?"

"Jessie," Race walked up to his daughter, "We need to figure out a plan. Find where to look to next. We need to figure out where they took Jonny."

"I have a feeling he's still here!"

"We've searched everywhere–"

"You didn't search enough!"

"Jessie!"

"He's still here Dad! He's still here! You haven't search enough. You haven't–"

Watching his daughter lose control broke Race's heart. He ran and held her in his arms as she fought him.

"Don't! Get away. You haven't searched enough…Why? God, why did this happen?"

"Jessie! It's okay," he tried soothing her. "Everything is going to be okay, sweetheart. You have to believe it."

Somewhere between the words, Jessie managed to calm down and hold on to her father, but the tears began to eventually bathe her face. She tried to remain strong, but is was useless. He was gone. Her Jonny was gone. "It's my fault," she whispered. "I did this to him."

"No," Race shook his head. "You didn't Ponchita. You couldn't have cause it or stop it. Whoever did this was prepared."

"Will we get him back?" Jessie asked between her sobs.

"I have no doubt in my mind," Race replied, his tone trying desperately to sound convincing. "We will get Jonny back."

XXXXXXXXXX

He sat in dark silence watching the machines that surrounded his son. At first, he prayed that his son would make it out of surgery. Now, he prayed he would just wake up. Jonny was on a respirator, his leg completely casted and his head partially bandaged. He was a complete mess.

The doctor quietly walked in to check on his patient, not expecting his employer to be there, "What are you doing here?"

"What do you think? Keeping my son company," he answered without taking his eyes off Jonny.

"You are going to drive yourself crazy," the doctor replied trying to control his tone of voice. Yelling at his boss could prove dangerous to him at the moment. "You should try to rest. The last five days have been overwhelming."

"How is he today?"

"The same," the doctor answered. "Coma's are not something I can control. The body will reboot when it's ready to reboot. I'm talking in layman's terms, but that's the best way that I can describe it."

Looking at his colleague, the Master tired eyes and worried tone spoke volumes, "He's been like this since you operated on him. It's been five days Oliver. When will he wake up?"

"I can't answer that," he shrugged as he walked over to his patient and began checking his vitals and the machines that aided his recovery. "The fall caused major damage to his body. To tell you the truth, I'm surprised he even survived. A fractured skull, broken femur and hip, dislocated shoulder and internal bleeding…it's truly a miracle."

The master offered a mirthless laugh, "A miracle. He was a miracle. I miracle that Rachel and I never really expected. I hope I didn't make a mistake. I'm just glad that Rachel isn't here to see this."

The doctor remained quiet as he continued checking the patient. He did think it was a miracle that Jonny Quest survived the fall. But, the chances he'd come out of the coma were dubious, to say the least. But he dare not say anything of the sort to the Master at the moment.

"Listen, bones will heal. Other than the head trauma, everything else is healing well. And his brain activity is normal. Let's just take this one day at a time."

Nodding, the Master answered, "When can we move him?"

"We shouldn't," the doctor acknowledge. "But, we can't stay on this base too much longer. Sooner or later, the government or I-1 will find out that this isn't ranch."

"I wouldn't worry about that," the Master dismissed it. "They already passed here two days ago asking if they had seen Aiden. Our operative played the role well. None of them suspected anything. Besides, externally, this place is the perfect place to hide the base."

"So they were here?"

"Yes, Bannon and Corbin. Like I said, nothing to worry about. And I heard that they are leaving tonight. They are going to regroup back in the states. Now, when can we move him?"

Sighing, the doctor replied, "What's the hurry then? They're leaving."

"Our operation doesn't stop, Oliver," The Master's tone was laced with venom. "I have people to answer to and I'll work in peace knowing that I can visit my son when I please."

Nodding, the doctor closed his datapad and walked over to the Master, "Give me three days to prepare everything that I need. If you want your son back, I need to make sure this transfer doesn't affect his healing. Is that alright with you?"

"Acceptable," he replied.

Once the doctor took leave, the Master took his son's hand and gently squeezed it, "Don't you worry my boy. You'll be alright. Once you get better, I will make sure you become the man you were meant to be."


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you all for reading! I hope you enjoy this somewhat short chapter. Again, this is not really a full blown story, rather scenes that help explain what happened before Jessie and Jonny meet again, five years later. Happy Sunday!

 **Chapter 2-Changes**

" _I got you! Jonny, try to pull yourself up!"_

" _There's nothing to hold on to!"_

" _I can't…hold on… to you for too long,"_

" _Jessie! You got to get higher!"_

" _But…"_

" _Go! Jessie, you've got to go!"_

" _Not without you!"_

" _Jessie! Go!"_

" _No!"_

"Jessie!"

Snapped back into reality, Jessie sat up from her desk. Looking up, she watched as the kids around her snickered and giggled.

"Jessie, are you alright?" Doctor Jan Weatherspoon, Jessie's chemistry teacher asked with a concerned tone. The woman had a strong English accent, but her enunciation of words was impeccable.

"Yes," Jessie immediately nodded as she pushed her hair away from her face. "I'm sorry."

As the rest of the class continued their giggling, Weatherspoon's eyes scanned the class. Her sturdy gaze quickly quieted them down, "That's alright. Let's continue with the lesson." And with that, the class brought their attention back to their teacher.

Dr. Weatherspoon taught part-time at the prestigious Waynflete Academy. Ranked the #1 private high school in Maine, Waynflete offered top ranked instructors, teachers and professionals in every field. Dr. Weatherspoon was an internationally acclaimed chemist who divided her time between teaching part time at the school and lecturing at Colby College and Harvard University where she served as a visiting professor. The rest of her time, she consulted privately with pharmaceutical companies.

She was highly regarded in her field and parents fought for a seat for their kids in her class. Jessie had won a seat and knew she had been lucky. But after the last four months, she couldn't put her thoughts together and was failing the class miserably. Time was running out and she had no doubt that Weatherspoon would dismiss her at any time. The woman would not waste any time on those who didn't make any effort in her class and Jessie knew she wasn't learning as fast as the others in class. The only thing on her mind was finding Jonny. Not that there had been any luck in that camp.

The school bell rang and Jessie startled a bit. Had an hour past? Had she really been reliving that day in her mind for the last sixty minutes?

"Okay, class," Weatherspoon hollered out, "I want the solution emailed to me no later than seven o'clock tonight. I mean it."

Jessie inwardly grimaced. _Great! What solution?_

"And don't forget your homework!"

Noticeably, she rolled her eyes. She had no idea what the homework assignment was. "Great," Jessie whispered to herself. _Well, I guess another zero in the books. Dad's going to kill me. If he even bothers to pay attention._ She had to admit that it hurt a little that all of Race's attention was focused on getting Jonny back. But, Jessie herself couldn't blame him. She wanted and needed her father to focus on finding Jonny. She knew that at the moment, that was important. But still, at times, she felt ignored and unwanted. She thought it was selfish of her to think that way, but she couldn't help it.

Gathering her books, Jessie was about to leave when she heard her name called, "Miss Bannon?"

She closed her eyes briefly knowing that the time had come. Weatherspoon was going to throw her out of class. _Damn it! I'm really screwed now._

Turning around, she walked up to her teacher, "Yes, Doctor Weatherspoon."

"Do you have a few minutes to spare?" The doctor gently smiled as she asked Jessie to sit in one of the front desks.

"Yes, of course," the red head answered as she took a seat and watched the teacher take a seat next to her.

"Jessie, I wanted to–"

"Dr. Weatherspoon," Jessie immediately interrupted, "I'm sorry I haven't given your class the attention it deserves. I was quite lucky to get a spot and now I'm wasting it and I understand if I'm dismissed for the rest of the semester. But, could you give me a few days to gather my thoughts so I can speak to my Dad about this?"

Looking rather shocked by the youth's calm demeanor but drastic action, Weatherspoon immediately answered, "Jessie, who said you were being dismissed?"

This time it was Jessie who looked shocked, "You're not kicking me out?"

The doctor gently smiled and answered, "No. I can't imagine what your family is going through. And I can understand why you haven't been paying much attention in class."

Sighing deeply, the red head responded, "I've barely been keeping up."

"Well," Dr. Weatherspoon stood up and went to her desk, "That's not necessarily true. I'm not done grading last week's test, but I did manage to get to yours." Walking back to Jessie, she handed the booklet to her.

Jessie looked at the blue book and her eyes widened, "B-?"

"Yes," the teacher nodded, "And that's without a curve."

"But how? I don't remember ever studying for this test. As a matter of fact, I didn't even know we had it until the day I showed up to class."

"Really?" the teacher seemed surprised.

Jessie looked down, ashamed, "I'm sorry. It's just that…it's been four months, Dr. Weatherspoon! There hasn't been a clue or a sighting or anything about Jonny or his captors. My Dad's in Washington this week getting updates from all three agencies, but I know he'll come back empty handed. I just feel like I've lost him. I've lost my best friend." _And the love of my life._

As Jessie looked back up, she noticed that Weatherspoon's expression held no pity for her. Instead, Jessie felt that there was something her teacher wanted to tell her. Something she wasn't sure she should tell her, "What?"

"Pardon me?"

"You want to tell me something," the red head countered. "What do you want to tell me?"

The doctor took a deep breath before answering, "If you had a choice in the matter, what would you do?"

"Find him," Jessie immediately said. "I'd go find him."

"Then do it."

"Excuse me?"

Standing up, the British woman walked to the front of the classroom and faced Jessie, "What if the federal agencies never find him?"

In a defensive tone, Jessie lashed, "Why would you tell me that?"

"You yourself said that your father is going to come back empty handed," she acknowledged. "Reasoning stands that three days is the window of opportunity to find a missing person. At this point, young Mister Quest has been missing four months."

"What are you saying Dr. Weatherspoon?"

"Truthfully, I don't know," she answered. "The only thing I do know is that one, Jonny may be back in a few weeks or it could take years. But, you being at this state is not going to bring him back any sooner."

"I still don't understand what you are getting at?" Jessie sat back and looked at her teacher, trying to study her.

"What I am saying is that you have to be prepared," she answered. "If he comes back soon, you'll want to spend time with him, which means that you need to put all your efforts on your studies so that you're able to take some time off to spend with him and your family. But if he doesn't, Jessie? How will you prepare yourself to find him?"

Jessie never thought of it that way. How _was_ she preparing herself? What help could she provide Jonny at her current state?

Her teacher gently said, "What I'm trying to tell you is that you need to prepare yourself to find him. All the current technology in the world hasn't been any help. So, what can you offer? How? The only way is by educating yourself and learning everything and anything possible to help you."

"School? School is going to help me find Jonny?" The thought sounded ridiculous.

"Not school, Jessie," she responded. "Knowledge. Knowledge will help you find Jonny."

For the first time in months, Jessie's eyes sparked.

"I'll be the first to tell you that I hope your father and his team find Jonny and bring him home as soon as possible. But, if that doesn't happen…. You are such a bright young mind, Ms. Bannon. Use it when it counts."

With unshed tears, Jessie asked, "You think I'll be able to do what they won't?"

Sighing and offering a small smile and a tone of confidence, Weatherspoon replied, "Don't you?"

XXXXXXXXXX

Frustrated, annoyed and ready to end his day, the doctor took a few minutes to do a last check on his patient. The Master had required him to conduct three checks a day on young Jonathan Quest. This would be the last one of the day.

The doctor was not expecting much. In the last four months, the bruises had healed, the bones had mended and the rehab therapist conducted all the needed Occupational Therapy to make sure bones and muscle tissue wouldn't wear.

The doctor had operated a total of three times on Jonathan. The first was the initial surgery after the incident, the second to mend the fractured pelvis and the third was, a totally unexpected one, was to stop a blood clot from reaching his heart. The last one had been a close call.

 _In the last four months the kid's cheated death more times than a cat!_

But throughout all these ordeals, Jonny Quest had not managed to wake up from his coma.

The doctor in a way had been grateful for that. He had never liked the idea of the kidnapping. He still had a hard time understanding why the Master wanted a kid in his life. For years that is all he talked about. Jonny. He followed the kid from a distance since he was two. There had been pictures in his office of him and his mother. And there were also surveillance pictures throughout Jonny's trips with his father and at school. There was nothing more that the Master wanted than his son. _His son. The bastard wasn't kidding. After all these years…._

Unfortunately, the doctor had been dragged in to the soap opera that was the Master's life. Now, he fought to keep the kid alive. In reality, nothing would have pleased him more than for Jonny to die. During all three surgeries, he wished it would have happened. But, the kid made it through. And having him in a coma was no better. The Master wanted him to miraculously cure the kid by all means possible. _Which is impossible_ , he thought as he shook his head and reached the door to Jonny's room.

Once inside, the doctor's gaze fell to the corner of the room. He rolled his eyes, "For Christ's sake, are you going to make this room your private office too?"

The Master, who sat on the sofa looked up from his tablet. With a cold stare he responded, "You don't understand how hard this is, Oliver. If you had a child, you'd understand the pain I am going through."

This time the doctor controlled himself from sarcastically answering back, "I need to check his vitals before I go." He went over to his patient and began checking him over.

Gone was the respirator from a few months ago when Jonny was on life support. Now, the only thing on his face was the oxygen prongs that provided him with more air to keep him comfortable. The Master had ordered that his son be provided with pajamas, he didn't want him in a hospital gown. Jonny's hair had grown a little longer and although he was extremely pale and a bit gaunt, his handsome features were still noticeable.

As the doctor finished his last examination of the day, he said, "His vitals are fine."

"It's been four months, Oliver. Will he stay that way?" the Master sounded worried as he stood up and walked over to the bed.

"I don't know," he shook his head. "Look. There's brain activity. I know this is hard for you, but realize that this is a good thing. His injuries were traumatic in nature. You have to be patient."

"I just didn't do all this to now lose him," the Master sighed as he caressed his son's face. "Please son, please wake up. I need you. I want you to know your real father."

The doctor watched with disgust the display of affection. _This has gone too far! I need to get rid of this kid before another screw falls out of this nut job's head!_

XXXXXXXXXX

Once Jessie left Doctor Weatherspoon's classroom, she walked over to her locker to gather the rest of her belongings before leaving for the day. As she headed there, she noticed the whispers, mummers, and the mild giggles from the girls around her.

It didn't bother her. Truthfully, she didn't care. Jessie knew what her peers thought about her. In a prestigious school like the one she attended, all students came from rich and successful families. From the moment, Jessie stepped in the school, she had noticed the designer dresses, jackets and accessories worn by her peers. She and Jonny never quite understood the fascination her friends had with the world of fashion. It was a good thing that neither teen succumbed to the environment they interacted in day by day.

It wasn't really the school of their choice, but it was the only school in their district that would allow them to travel whenever their parents wanted them to go. They could utilize the opportunities and make up their missing assignments online. It helped that whatever they didn't understand a certain topic Doctor Quest or Iris took over.

Jessie sighed as she reached her locker. She knew what the looks and whispers were about. Wearing grey and black sweatpants, sneakers, she wasn't exactly fashionable at her school. In all honesty, since Jonny's disappearance, fashion was the least of her interest. All she wanted was just to get through each day.

The girl next to her locker, looked at her up and down before smirking at Jessie, closing her locker and walking away. _Idiot! Why does she care what I look like? I'm clean, I'm comfortable. She's going to have a backache after walking all over campus in those heels!_

About to close her locker door and leave for the day, she was startled by a tap on her shoulder. Jumping a little, she turned around. Adam, a friend from her English class smiled at her, "Sorry J. Didn't mean to startle you."

"That's okay Adam. My mind was somewhere else. What's up?"

"Listen, about the group paper we need to write?" he began, "I still haven't gotten your section and it's due tomorrow afternoon. I'm going to go ahead and put the finishing touches tonight and I was wondering when I would get your part." He looked concerned. Not about Jessie, but that he wouldn't receive the needed information from her. The kid also had his reservations about her lack of engagement since her return four months ago, but he was respectful and kept his thoughts to himself.

 _Damn! I forgot about the paper!_ "Sure! I'm sorry. I'm almost finished with the section. Would it be okay if I email it to you by five o'clock today?"

His eyes light up. He looked relieved, "Sure! That' be perfect. Thanks Jessie!"

"No problem. I'm sorry, I didn't tell you sooner, but it's almost done," she smiled.

After Adam left, Jessie sighed, "Guess, I'm not going home yet." She headed to the library and took a seat in one of the desks, opened her laptop. The paper wasn't as bad as she thought. Jessie was able to finish it in a little less than two hours. Satisfied, she was able to finish her portion and send it to Adam with twenty minutes to spare.

Picking up her things and heading out, Jessie passed the engineering section. As she walked through the section, a couple of titles sparked her attention. Her eyes suddenly fell on a black book with gold lettering, titled, "Searching and Tracking through Virtual Reality." Putting her book bag on the floor, she retrieved the book from the shelf and perused the pages. The book discussed theories and possible practices in creating applications that enabled satellites to be used to find people around the world. The theories discussed would be applicable to government agencies hoping to track down criminals or suspects in hiding.

Finding the reading interesting, Jessie closed the book, picked up her book bag and headed to the checkout counter. As soon as she finished homework, she had some reading to do.

XXXXXXXXXX

The room was dark, except for the dim light coming from the small desk lamp in the corner of the room. As the doctor walked in, he noticed that the Master had taken leave. _Good_ , he thought. _It will be easier to get this over and done with without him present._ Since the abnormal display of attention two days prior from the Master to his 'son', the doctor knew that he had to act fast and end the madness he had witnessed from the past few months.

Dextracon, the medical name he had given his creation, was just a narcotic that would slow the heart rate until it stopped. It mimicked a heart attack. It was a beautiful drug too. The best part was that it was untraceable and it could be taken orally or as he was about to do, inject it on the victim. In this case his patient.

The decision had been somewhat difficult. If the Master ever found out what he was about to do, there would be no doubt that the Doctor wouldn't last the night. He'd be dead on the spot. But, it didn't matter at the moment. The Master was jeopardizing too much keeping the boy alive. He had to get rid of him and fast.

Walking over to the bed, the doctor noticed how peaceful Jonny looked. He knew the drug wouldn't disturb the peaceful slumber. It was a painless drug. Jonny would fall asleep even deeper, his heart would slow down and eventually stop. No one could really ask for a more painless death than the one he was about to receive.

"You're as much trouble asleep as you are awake," he whispered. "I need you gone so that we can all continue with our lives and the growth of this organization."

The doctor was about to pull the injection from his pocket when he heard the door open and quickly turned around, "Oliver, is there something wrong?" The Master walked in with a concern look in his eyes.

"No," he quickly answered. "Just thought I heard his levels peak and came in to check on him."

As the Master passed him, the doctor closed his eyes in regret. He'd have to find another time.

"Oliver! Oh my God!" The Master almost shouted.

Looking at the Master's shocked expression, the doctor looked down at his patient and saw Jonny's eyes opened. The doctor's eyes widened as well. Although Jonny's gaze was unfocused, as he looked around the room, both men could tell that there was awareness.

The Master immediately held his son's hand, "You're going to be fine, son." Jonny looked at him for a few seconds before his eyes closed once again.

Nervous, the Master looked at the doctor, "Is he alright?"

Nodding and trying to hide the regret he had for not doing the act sooner, the doctor replied, "He's awake."


End file.
